Global Sumud Flotilla Continues Journey After Israeli Attack
Antonis Vradis
Despite an Israeli navy attack that left at least 30 wounded and four reportedly sexually assaulted, the Global Sumud Flotilla remains determined to continue its humanitarian mission to Gaza. The flotilla is regrouping at Marmaris, Turkey, while two released detainees face torture allegations. Each mission, critics say, challenges Israel’s tactics and tests Western complicity.
Despite an Israeli navy attack that left at least 30 people wounded and four reportedly sexually assaulted, the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) remains determined to continue its humanitarian journey to Gaza. Two other members, Saif Abu Keshek and Thiago Ávila, were taken to Israel, where they faced terrorism charges and were beaten and tortured during detention before being released after hunger strikes in protest.
The remaining flotilla members, who were not kidnapped by the Israeli navy at sea, affirm: we are still moving forward. The flotilla is heading to the Turkish port of Marmaris to regroup, undeterred by the violent intervention they endured or were informed about.
Historically, flotillas heading to Gaza have often been criticized as performative, but in reality they have yielded concrete results. In October, the GSF mission helped create pressure that forced Israel to accept a ceasefire, announced days after the violent intervention. However, this ceasefire was deemed “performative” as the Israeli military continued massacring Palestinians and refusing humanitarian aid.
Each flotilla mission contributes to weakening Israel’s genocidal and belligerent tactics. Even before full regrouping, 22 ships of the flotilla were targeted, sparking international debate over violations of maritime law. Geopolitical questions arise: should the Greek coast guard have responded to distress signals in its search-and-rescue zone? Should it have prevented the Israeli prison ship from leaving the port of Ierapetra, Crete, when reports surfaced of torture of international activists?
As the flotilla moved eastward, it entered the disputed Aegean waters between Greece and Turkey, where overlapping claims over airspace, territorial waters, and search-and-rescue zones have remained unresolved since the 1970s. The question of responsibility when foreign navies operate in a nation’s waters becomes even harder to answer.
Despite all difficulties, the flotilla continues toward Gaza with unshakable resolve. Israel is determined to create new realities at sea, just as it has created illegal settlements in the West Bank. These increasingly distant interventions off the Palestinian coast undermine freedom of navigation.
The GSF mission, not a performance, has become a test of Western complicity in genocide and Israel’s extra-territorial claims. Those aboard do not claim to be heroes, but their mission has become even more critical after what just happened. The flotilla calls on everyone to choose a side.
